Funny Car driver Alexander trying to make his mark in NHRA

NATIonal hot rod association
Blake Alexander has finished runnerup at Charlotte and reached the semifinals at Bristol this season. He is competing today at the 29th annual Auto-Plus NHRA Nationals at Maple Grove Raceway outside Reading.

Maple Grove Raceway holds special meaning for Blake Alexander.

It was there, in 2011, that the 25-year-old from Smith Mountain Lake, Va., made his National Hot Rod Association pro debut in Funny Car for Paul Smith Racing.

Calling it "the crescendo of a childhood dream," Alexander qualified 14th and lost in the first round to Matt Hagan.

But nostalgia isn't the only reason Maple Grove is special to Alexander. The track outside Reading traditionally is a place where speeds are fast and records are ripe for the taking.

"It is important and exciting because everyone knows it's the fastest track," Alexander said. "This is where you measure up all you've learned and how far you've come throughout the season."

Alexander qualified 15th for the 29th annual Auto-Plus NHRA Nationals at Maple Grove in 4.156 seconds at 300.20 mph. He will face No. 2 qualifier Courtney Force in the first round of eliminations today.

Coming into this event, he was 16th in the standings with 424 points. He had a runnerup finish in 4-Wide Nationals at Charlotte in April and made a trip to the semifinals in the Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol, Tenn., in June.

"I had a great car there (at Bristol) until I ran into John Force," Alexander said. "That's happened to me a few times this year."

Indeed, Alexander is 0-3 this season against the 15-time Funny Car champion.

He said that John Force is someone he admired growing up and that John has kind of taken him under his wing because Alexander reminds John a bit of himself when he was first starting out.

"He tells me when I get out of the car that he used to be me," Alexander said. "He didn't win for 10 years before he won."

A recent graduate of Radford University, Alexander's story is an interesting one.

Starting out in a Junior Dragster at age 11, Alexander worked his way up through the sportsman ranks. During that time, he would put together proposals in order to attract sponsors. He landed his first sponsor, Gates Automotive, when he was 16 years old. The company that manufactures belts and hoses for cars is still with him.

Eventually, this led Alexander to create his own company while in college, Blake Alexander Racing. He takes what he was learned in the classroom at Radford and applies it to the boardroom in an effort to secure and build relationships with potential sponsors.

"I handle the marketing, PR, driving and sponsor relations," Alexander said. "There's a lot of different hats I wear to get it done."

Today's race at Maple Grove is the last time Alexander is scheduled to compete this season.

In November, he will head to Las Vegas for the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) Show to meet with current and prospective sponsors about possibly expanding his program in 2014.

While he said he is weighing some offers to race for other teams, Alexander would like to try to keep doing it his way. The small samples of success he has enjoyed this season have him motivated to keep his head down and keep working hard.

"People know I want it," Alexander said. "You can look at some people and tell they just want to drive the car for their ego. I want the total package. I want what I started - the business, the driving, the marketing program - everything to come together with synergy."

Contact the writer: swalsh@timesshamrock.com @swalshTT on Twitter

We welcome user discussion on our site, under the following guidelines:

To comment you must first create a profile and sign-in with a verified DISQUS account or social network ID. Sign up here.

Comments in violation of the rules will be denied, and repeat violators will be banned. Please help police the community by flagging offensive comments for our moderators to review. By posting a comment, you agree to our full terms and conditions. Click here to read terms and conditions.